[BC] All Sports Stations

[Mike McCarthy]

Tribune is 100% owner of Cubs.    They bought the team in the 
80's.  Which is LONG after WGN radio and TV started carrying the 
games.  FWIW, after Sam Zell bough Tribune, he's looking to sell the 
Cubs to pare down some of the debt he incurred taking the company 
private.  Radio and TV did 10 year deals with the team before the 
Trib sale closed knowing there could be a split between the 
"operating divisions".

Chicago has two all sports stations which don't do well in the 12+, 
but are quite popular with men 24+.  A third, One on One Sports, then 
Sporting News Radio bailed because they could not get any traction 
AND were more closely linked to gambling than many had felt 
comfortable having on in the background at work.  The network used be 
run from here, but closed up shop and moved to LA as a MUCH smaller operation.

The bulk of the pro sports teams are on the two sports stations 
except the Cubs and Bears.  The latter is on WBBM...all news 
format.  Of course, the 5 minor league operations around the metro 
are on suburban stations.

OTOH, as Bob Boxer pointed out, the top tier teams have escalated 
their terms so high that many stations simply walk away from the 
teams and the teams go after stations to purchase.  It happened in 
St. Louis and in DC where Dan Snyder bought a group of stations for 
his Redskins network.  The latest rage is the teams own the 
broadcasts and networks.  The "flagship" station is merely a 
clearinghouse for the games with a revenue sharing plan not required 
for the network stations..because the network stations can't afford 
it and would bail in a heartbeat.

However...OTOH, the Blackhawks just signed a deal to go back to TV 
after 30 years of being off due to the late owner's misguided notion 
that TV took fans out of the seats.  The franchise is not as 
desirable as the NLB or NFL teams and as a result needed to make some 
serious concessions to stay on the air in both mediums.

Sports PBP broadcasts are simply a really perishable product with 
both timing and luck both playing a role in a successful relationship.

MM

At 07:51 AM 5/3/2008 -0400, Tom wrote
>Query in all this - WTBS has a relationship with the Atlanta teams - 
>as in, ownership / front office; but... How much, if any, of the 
>Cubs does Tribune own?